When personal computers still cost multiple thousands of dollars and the internet was somewhere that only technical geeks would be found, the term IRL came to mean “in real life” as opposed to an online interaction.
Here’s a reality check for those using the internet in 2009: online life and offline life are one and the same. In order to be authentic and in order to be trustworthy, your clients, colleagues, and other associates are going to expect that you are one person. As you build offline client relationships, those clients are going to expect you’ll treat them in a similar manner online. As you meet and get to know people online, your first offline encounter will be a continuation of the trust and relationship that has developed.
We’ve moved beyond the point where we think of online and offline as separate worlds. Your Facebook site is you. Twitter is real life.
Photo by JoshuaDavisPhotography. COM, used under Creative Commons licensing
